Bearer activation for multiple radio access technology dual connectivity scenarios

ABSTRACT

A method for activating bearers in radio access networks includes receiving information regarding channel conditions for a secondary RAT; identifying a first set of radio bearers for a primary RAT and a second set of radio bearers for the secondary RAT based on the received channel conditions; and establishing the first set of radio bearers associated with the primary RAT. The method may also include providing a message to a core network indicating that first set of radio bearers have been established for the primary RAT, the message includes an indication that the second set of radio bearers will be established after the core network has been configured for operation with the first set of radio bearers; reconfiguring a UE for establishing the second set of radio bearers associated with the secondary RAT; and indicating that the reconfiguration of the UE for the second set of radio bearers is complete.

BACKGROUND

Long Term Evolution (LTE) is an existing mobile telecommunicationsstandard for wireless communication. LTE networks include 4^(th)Generation (4G) wireless networks which are widely deployed throughoutthe world. LTE increased the capacity and speed from prior generationsof wireless networks and simplified the network architecture to apacket-based system. Next Generation wireless networks, such as 5^(th)Generation (5G) networks, have been proposed as the next evolution ofwireless networks. Next Generation wireless networks are designed toincrease data transfer rates, increase spectral efficiency, improvecoverage, improve capacity, and reduce latency.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary network environmentproviding multiple radio access technologies (RATs) for dual wirelessconnectivity;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary networking system having aprimary access network based on an LTE standard and a secondary accessnetwork based on a 5G standard;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing exemplary components of an eNodeBaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a is a block diagram showing exemplary components of an gNodeBaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing exemplary components of a userequipment (UE) according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are call flow diagrams showing message flows associatedwith establishing radio bearers for wireless communication using an LTERAT;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are call flow diagrams showing message flowsestablishing radio bearers for wireless communication using a 5G RAT;and

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing an exemplary process for beareractivation which may be performed by a master node.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. The following detailed description does not limitthe invention.

Embodiments described herein are directed to wireless communicationssystems which may efficiently activate bearers within multiple radioaccess technologies (multi-RATs) employing dual connectivityconfigurations. Dual connectivity configurations have been establishedto accomplish higher per-user throughput and mobility robustness, andimprove load balancing. In a multi-RAT dual connectivity deployment, auser equipment (UE) device may be wirelessly connected simultaneously totwo nodes: a master node, which is associated with a primary RAT, and asecondary node which is associated with the secondary RAT.

In conventional dual connectivity configurations having multi-RATdeployments, all of the radio bearers are first set up for wirelesscommunication with the master node. Once the radio bearers for themaster node have been established, suitable radio bearers are thentransferred and reestablished for use with the secondary node. As usedherein, the term “establish” is not restricted to initiating the radiobearers or setting up the radio bearers for the first time, but may alsoapply to reestablishing or activating the radio bearers upon UEtransitioning from an idle state to an active state (e.g., waking upfrom a power saving mode). Thus, in conventional systems, someinefficiency occurs as the transferred bearers are initially setup atthe master node only to be subsequently transferred for use with thesecondary node. This inefficiency may be compounded as the UE cyclesbetween idle and active states (which may occur every 10 seconds),because the radio bearers are released by the nodes to conserveresources, only to be reestablished when the UE becomes active againafter a period of inactivity. Thus, the transferred radio bearers, whichare not used by the master node for wireless communications with the UE,are repeatedly set up and torn down as the UE cycles causing unnecessarymessaging activity in the core network.

Embodiments herein avoid this inefficiency by initially having themaster node only establish radio bearers which will be used by theprimary RAT for wireless communication with the UE. Once the radiobearers for use by the master node are established, radio bearers whichare suitable for use with the secondary RAT are established for use withthe secondary node for wireless communications with the UE. Thisapproach to bearer activation may avoid the inefficiencies ofconventional networks which needlessly set up radio bearers at themaster node which are never used for wireless communications with the UEover the primary RAT.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary network environment 100providing multiple radio access technologies (RATs) for dual wirelessconnectivity. Network environment 100 may include a user equipment (UE)device 110, a master node (MN) 120, a secondary node (SN) 130, a corenetwork 140, and a wide area network (WAN) 150. Network environment 100may be divided into a primary access network and a secondary accessnetwork. The primary access network includes both wireless access nodes,MN 120 and SN 130, and UE 110. The secondary access network includessecondary node 130 and UE 110, and may be thought of as a subset of theprimary access network. For ease of explanation, only one UE 110, one MN120, and one SN 130 are illustrated as being connected to core network140. However, any number of UEs 110, MNs 120, SNs 130, core networks 140and/or other known network entities may be included in networkenvironment 100.

As shown in FIG. 1, UE 110 may connect to core network 140, and in turnwith WAN 150, through separate wireless access nodes using wirelesschannels having two different RATs. Specifically, UE 110 may wirelesslycommunicate through MN 120 over primary RAT 115, and wirelesslycommunicate though SN 130 over secondary RAT 117. UE 110 may communicateover each RAT 115, 117 separately or use both RATs 115, 117simultaneously. To provide flexibility and improved performance, primaryRAT 115 and secondary RAT 117 may be based on different wirelessstandards. For example, in one embodiment, core network 140 and MN 120may operate in accordance with the LTE wireless standard (e.g., 4G and4.5G), and SN 130 operates in accordance with the 5G wireless standard.Alternatively, in another embodiment, MN 120 may operate in accordancewith the 5G wireless standard, and SN 130 may operate in accordance withthe LTE (e.g., 4G and 4.5G) wireless standard. Other embodiments mayoperate in accordance with other technologies for public land mobilenetworks (PLMNs) and include other cellular network standards, and/orany other local and/or wide area wireless networking technologies.

MN 120 may control standard procedures for having the UE 110 initiateconnections and interact with core network 140. For example, UE 110 mayinitiate procedures such as, for example, Attach, Tracking Area Update,Service Request, etc., thorough MN 120 to transition into a connectedstate with core network 140. During such procedures, radio bearers maybe established for communicating over an air channel interface using aparticular RAT 115, 117. As used herein, the term “bearer” may refer toa virtual network connection between two endpoints which provides atransport service for exchanging data having specified quality ofservice (QoS) attributes. The data exchanged over bearers, also referredto herein as “service data flows,” may be associated with a particularservice class (e.g., conversational class for voice data, streamingclass for video data, interactive class for web browsing, etc.).

The MN 120 may determine which RAT 115, 117 is best suited for aparticular bearer depending upon, for example, the QoS of the bearer.The determination may be made, for example, based on measurement reportsof channel conditions for each RAT 115, 117. MN 120 may initially onlyestablish a first set of radio bearers associated with primary RAT 115for communications with core network 140. After the first set of radiobearers are established, a second set of radio bearers associated withRAT 117 may be established between UE 110 and SN 130. Once radio bearershave been set up on RATs 115 and 117, UE 110 may wirelessly communicateover either RAT 115 or 117, or both RATs 115 and 117 simultaneously, toexchange service data flows with core network 140 and WAN 150.

MN 120 and SN 130 may each be directly connected to core network 140 toexchange service data flows within the network environment 100 andcommunicate with external resources (not shown) connected to WAN 150. MN120 and SN 130 may also be connected directly to each other to provide aredundant path for service data flows in the event one of the wirelesschannels corresponding to RAT 115 or RAT 117 experiences a failure.

While the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 only shows two different RATs 115and 117 in a dual connectivity scenario, additional RATs (i.e., three ormore), which could be based on standards other than LTE and/or 5G (e.g.,cellular and/or other wireless technologies such as WiFi), may be usedto provide alternate approaches for wireless connectivity.

UE 110 may include any type of UE having multiple RAT capabilities, andthus communicate with multiple nodes using different wireless channelsemploying different types of RATs 115, 117. UE 110 may be a UE that mayinclude, for example, a cellular radiotelephone, a smart phone, atablet, a set-top box (STB), a mobile phone, any type of internetprotocol (IP) communications device, a Voice over Internet Protocol(VoIP) device, a laptop computer, a palmtop computer, a wearablecomputer, a gaming device, a media player device, or a digital camerathat includes communication capabilities (e.g., wireless communicationmechanisms such as Wi-Fi), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc. Invarious embodiments, the RAT 115 and/or RAT 117 may be supported by anyappropriate cellular radio access network (RAN), such as, for example,an LTE evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (eUTRAN) and a5G network. In other embodiments, the RATs 115 and/or 117 may include alocal or wide area wireless network. A local area wireless network mayinclude any type of WiFi (e.g., any IEEE 802.11x network, where x=a, b,c, g, and/or n). A wide area wireless network may include any type ofwireless network covering larger areas, and may include a mesh network(e.g., IEEE 802.11s) and/or or a WiMAX IEEE 802.16.

MN 120 may be configured to operate in multiple coverage modes and/orusing one or more wireless channels based on different RATs inaccordance with one or more known wireless standards. MN 120 may bereconfigurable with respect to improvements of existing standards andfuture standards for any type of radio access network, and can becompatible with known wireless standards. Such standards may include,for example, LTE, LTE Advanced, 5G, etc. In some embodiments, MN 120 maybe a wireless access point which can service any type of WiFi standard(e.g., any IEEE 802.11x network, where x=a, b, c, g, and/or n), and/orinclude any other type of wireless network technology for coveringlarger areas, and may include a mesh network (e.g., IEEE 802.11s) and/oror a WiMAX IEEE 802.16. MN 120 may also have a direct connection with SN130 to provide a failover in the event a wireless channel associatedwith RAT 115 or 117 becomes inoperable.

SN 120 may be configured to operate in multiple coverage modes and/orusing one or more wireless channels based on different RATs inaccordance with one or more known wireless standards. Secondary node 120may typically operate using a different type of RAT 117 than RAT 115used by MN 120. SN 130 may be reconfigurable with respect toimprovements of existing standards and future standards for any type ofradio access network, and can be compatible with known wirelessstandards. Such standards may include, for example, LTE, LTE Advanced,5G, etc. In some embodiments, SN 130 may be a wireless access pointwhich can service any type of WiFi standard (e.g., any IEEE 802.11xnetwork, where x=a, b, c, g, and/or n), and/or include any other type ofwireless network technology for covering larger areas, and may include amesh network (e.g., IEEE 802.11s) and/or or a WiMAX IEEE 802.16. SN 130may also have a direct connection with MN 120 to provide a failover inthe event a wireless channel associated with RAT 115 or 117 becomesinoperable.

Core network 140 may be a core networking infrastructure that providesmobility management, session management, authentication, and packettransport to support UE 110, MN 120, and SN 130 wireless communicationusing a dual connectivity, multi-RAT configuration. Core network 140 mayfurther provide access to WAN 150. Core network 140 may be compatiblewith known wireless standards which may include, for example, LTE, LTEAdvanced, 3GPP 5G, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM),Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), IS-2000, etc.

WAN 150 may be any type of wide area network connecting back-haulnetworks and/or core networks, and may include a metropolitan areanetwork (MAN), an intranet, the Internet, a cable-based network (e.g.,an optical cable network), networks operating known protocols, includingAsynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Optical Transport Network (OTN),Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Synchronous Digital Hierarchy(SDH), Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS), and/or Transmission ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary networking system 200 havingthe primary access network based on the LTE standard and the secondaryaccess network based on the 5G standard. Networking system 200 mayinclude an LTE network which is part of a multi-RAT radio access networkhaving eNodeB 220 serving as a master node (MN). The secondary accessnetwork may include a gNodeB 230 serving as a secondary node (SN). UE110 and eNodeB 220 may exchange data over a wireless channel that is aprimary RAT 215 based on LTE air channel interface protocols, while UE110 and gNodeB 230 may exchange data over a wireless channel that is asecondary RAT 217 based on 5G air channel interface protocols. UE 110may be configured to operate with both RATs 215, 217, and cancommunication data simultaneously over each respective RAT.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, core network 140 may be realized asan evolved Packet Core (ePC) 240 which works in conjunction with anevolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) TerrestrialNetwork (eUTRAN) that includes at least one eNodeB 220. Networkingsystem 200 may further include an Internet Protocol (IP) network, whichmay be embodied separately or included in a backhaul network (not shown)and/or WAN 150.

EPC 240 may include one or more devices that are physical and/or logicalentities interconnected via standardized interfaces. EPC 240 provideswireless packet-switched services and wireless IP connectivity to userdevices to provide, for example, data, voice, and/or multimediaservices. EPC 240 may further include a mobility management entity (MME)230, a serving gateway (SGW) 240, a home subscriber server (HSS) 260, apacket data network gateway (PGW) 270, and a Policy and Charging RulesFunction (PCRF) 290. It is noted that FIG. 2 depicts a representativenetworking system 200 with exemplary components and configuration shownfor purposes of explanation. Other embodiments may include additional ordifferent network entities in alternative configurations than which areexemplified in FIG. 2.

Further referring to FIG. 2, eNodeB 220 and gNodeB 230 may include oneor more devices and other components having functionality that allows UE110 to wirelessly connect the respective RAT 215, 217 of eNodeB 220 andgNodeB 230, respectively. ENodeB 220 may interface with ePC 240 via a S1interface, which may be split into a control plane S1-MME interface 224and a data plane S1-U interface 225. EnodeB 220 may interface with MME230 via S1-MME interface 224, and interface with SGW 240 via S1-Uinterface 225. GNodeB 230 may interface with ePC 240 via a data planeS1-U interface 226. S1-U interface 226 may be implemented, for example,using GTP. S1-MME interface 225 may be implemented, for example, with aprotocol stack that includes a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocol and/orStream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP).

ENodeB 220 and gNodeB 230 may communicate directly over an X2 interface222 that may serve, for example, as a failover data connection in theevent one of the wireless channels associated with RATs 215, 217 fails.The X2 interface 222 may use a protocol that tunnels end-user packetsbetween eNodeB 220 and gNodeB 230, where the tunneling function supportsthe identification of packets with the tunnels and packet lossmanagement. X2 interface 222 may use GTP-U over user datagram protocol(UDP) or internet protocol (IP) as the transport layer protocol.

MME 230 may implement control plane processing for both the primaryaccess network using and the secondary access network. For example,through either eNodeB 220 or gNodeB 230, MME 230 may implement trackingand paging procedures for UE 110, may activate and deactivate bearersfor UE 110, and may authenticate a user of UE 110 to provide normalcoverage service for operating in normal UE device mode. MME 230 mayalso select a particular SGW 240 for a particular UE 110. MME 230 mayinterface with other MMEs (not shown) in ePC 240 and may send andreceive information associated with UEs 110, which may allow one MME 230to take over control plane processing of UEs serviced by another MME230, if the other MME becomes unavailable.

SGW 240 may provide an access point to and from UE 110, may handleforwarding of data packets for UE 110, and may act as a local anchorpoint during handover procedures between eNodeBs 220 and gNodeB 230. SGW240 may interface with PGW 270 through an S5/S8 interface 245. S5/S8interface 245 may be implemented, for example, using GTP.

PGW 270 may function as a gateway to WAN 150 through a SGi interface255. WAN 150, which may provide various services (e.g., over the topvoice services) to UE 110. A particular UE 110, while connected to asingle SGW 240, may be connected to multiple PGWs 250, one for eachpacket network with which UE 110 communicates.

Alternatively, UE 110 may exchange data with WAN 150 though a WiFiwireless access point (WAP) (not shown). The WiFi WAP may be part of alocal area network, and access WAN 150 through a wired connection via arouter. Alternatively, the WiFi WAP may be part of a mesh network (e.g.,802.11s). The WiFi WAP may also be part of a wide area network (WiMAX)or a mesh network (802.11s).

MME 230 may communicate with SGW 240 through an S11 interface 235. S11interface 235 may be implemented, for example, using GTPv2. S11interface 235 may be used to create and manage a new session for aparticular UE 110. S11 interface 235 may be activated when MME 230 needsto communicate with SGW 240, such as when the particular UE 110 attachesto ePC 240, when bearers need to be added or modified for an existingsession for the particular UE 110, when a connection to a new PGW 270needs to be created, or during a handover procedure (e.g., when theparticular UE 110 needs to switch to a different SGW 240).

HSS 260 may store information associated with UEs 110 and/or informationassociated with users of UEs 110. For example, HSS 260 may store userprofiles that include registration, authentication, and accessauthorization information. MME 230 may communicate with HSS 260 throughan S6a interface 265. S6a interface 265 may be implemented, for example,using a Diameter protocol.

PCRF 290 provides policy control decision and flow based chargingcontrol functionalities. PCRF 290 may provide network control regardingservice data flow detection, gating, QoS and flow based charging, etc.PCRF 290 may determine how a certain service data flow shall be treated,and may ensure that user plane traffic mapping and treatment is inaccordance with a user's subscription profile. PCRF 290 may communicatewith PGW 270 using a Gx interface 280. Gx interface 280 may beimplemented, for example, using a Diameter protocol.

During various procedures consistent with the operation of an LTEnetwork, such as, for example, an Attach procedure, a Tracking AreaUpdate, a Service Request etc., UE 110 may employ normal procedures andutilize eNodeB 220 to move into a connected state with the LTE network.For this state, eNodeB 220 may establish radio bearers that arerequested by ePC 240. Typically, within ePC 240, Internet and internetmultimedia system (IMS) access point name (APN) related bearers areestablished, so eNodeB 220 may establish radio bearers to exchangeservice data flows with UE 110. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2,eNodeB 220 may initially establish radio bearers which will be used onlyby primary RAT 215 for wireless communication with UE 110. Once theradio bearers for use by the eNodeB 220 are established, then eNodeB 220may configure UE 110 for operation with radio bearers with gNodeB 230 onsecondary RAT 217. Details of the messages exchanged for setting upradio bearers on RAT 215 and 217 during a service request are describedbelow in relation to FIGS. 6A-7B.

While FIG. 2 shows exemplary components of networking system 200, inother implementations, networking system 200 may include fewercomponents, different components, differently arranged components, oradditional components than depicted in FIG. 2. Additionally oralternatively, one or more components of networking system 200 mayperform functions described as being performed by one or more othercomponents of networking system 200.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing exemplary components of an eNodeB 220according to an embodiment. ENodeB 220 may provide connectivity to UE110 over an air channel interface using RAT 215 based on wirelessprotocols in accordance with LTE, LTE Advance, 3GPP 4G and/or 4.5G.ENodeB 220 may provide wireless network connectivity to devicesconnected to evolved Packet Core (ePC) 240 in a dual connectivity,multi-RAT configuration, and to network devices connected to wide areanetworks (e.g., the Internet). As shown in FIG. 3, eNodeB 220 mayinclude a processor 310, a memory 320, a storage device 330, a networkinterface 340, a radio frequency (RF) interface 360, and an antenna 370.A bus 380 may interconnect the components of eNodeB 220 to exchange dataand/or analog signals.

Processor 310 may include one or more processors, microprocessors,application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmablegate arrays (FPGAs), and/or other processing logic. Processor 310 maycontrol operation of eNodeB 220 and its components and perform signalprocessing operations, for example, the digital modulation anddemodulation of signals. Processor 310 may also perform processing tofacilitate communications over the backhaul network and WAN 150.Processor 310 may also operate in the non-access stratum and thusfacilitate signaling and coordination with network devices in wirelessaccess network to manage the establishment of communication sessions andfor maintaining continuous communications. Processor 310 may include amodem (not shown) and function together to facilitate the operations ofeNodeB 220 in accordance with a variety of wireless communicationprotocols.

Memory 320 may include a random access memory (RAM) or another type ofdynamic storage device, a read only memory (ROM) or another type ofstatic storage device, a removable memory card, and/or another type ofmemory to store data and instructions that may be used by processor 310.Storage device 330 may include any type of mass storage device such as ahard disk, a solid state disk, etc., for long term and/or scratchstorage of data and instructions used by processor 310.

Network interface 340 may include a logical component that includesinput and/or output ports, input and/or output systems, and/or otherinput and output components that facilitate the transmission of data toother devices via a backhaul link. For example, network interface 340may include a network interface card (e.g., Ethernet card) for wiredcommunications and/or a wireless network interface (e.g., a WiFi) cardfor wireless communications.

RF interface 360 may include one or more RF transceivers that enableeNodeB 220 to communicate with UEs 110 via wireless communications usingRAT 115. An RF transceiver may include an RF transmitter that receivessignals to be transmitted wirelessly and performs signal processing onthe signals before providing the signals to antenna 370, and an RFreceiver that receives signals from antenna 370 and performs RF signalprocessing on the received signals before providing the received signalsto processor 310. For example, the RF transceiver may performanalog-to-digital and digital-to-analog conversion, analog and/ordigital modulation and demodulation, up-conversion and down-conversion,and/or amplification of signals.

Antenna 370 may include one or more antennas to transmit and/or receiveRF signals over the air. Antenna assembly 370 may, for example, receiveRF signals from network interface 340 and transmit the signals over theair, and receive RF signals over the air and provide them to networkinterface 340.

As described herein, eNodeB 220 may perform certain operations inresponse to processor 310 executing software instructions contained in acomputer-readable medium, such as memory 320 and/or storage device 330.A computer-readable medium may be defined as a non-transitory memorydevice. A non-transitory memory device may include memory space within asingle physical memory device or spread across multiple physical memorydevices. The software instructions may be read into memory 320 fromanother computer-readable medium or from another device via networkinterface 340. The software instructions contained in memory 320 maycause processing unit 310 to perform processes that will be describedbelow in relation to FIG. 8. Alternatively, hardwired circuitry may beused in place of, or in combination with, software instructions toimplement processes described herein. Thus, implementations describedherein are not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitryand software.

Although FIG. 3 shows example components of eNodeB 220, in otherimplementations, eNodeB 220 may include fewer components, differentcomponents, differently arranged components, or additional componentsthan those depicted in FIG. 3. Additionally or alternatively, one ormore components of eNodeB 220 may perform the tasks described as beingperformed by one or more other components of eNodeB 220.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing exemplary components of a gNodeB 230according to an embodiment. GNodeB 230 may provide connectivity to UE110 over an air channel interface using RAT 217 based on wirelessprotocols in accordance with 3GPP 5G. GNodeB 230 may further providewireless and/or wireless network connectivity to other devices connectedto ePC 240 in a dual connectivity, multi-RAT configuration, and tonetwork devices connected to wide area networks (e.g., the Internet).GNodeB 230 may include a processor 410, a memory 420, a storage device430, a network interface 440, an antenna controller 450, RFtransmit/receive (TX/RX) elements 460, and an antenna array 470. A bus480 may interconnect the components of gNodeB 230 to exchange dataand/or analog signals.

Processor 410 may include one or more processors, microprocessors,application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmablegate arrays (FPGAs), and/or other processing logic that may interpretand execute instructions and/or low level logic. Processor 410 maycontrol operation of gNodeB 230 and its components. Processor 410 mayalso perform various communications and signal processing operationsallowing for gNodeB 230 to efficiently communicate over the wirelessnetwork. Processor 410 may also perform processing to facilitatecommunications over the back haul network and WAN 150. Processor 410 mayalso operate in the non-access stratum and thus facilitate signaling andcoordination with network devices in wireless access network to managethe establishment of communication sessions and for maintainingcontinuous communications. Processor 410 may include a modem (not shown)and function together to facilitate the operations of gNodeB 230 inaccordance with a variety of wireless communication protocols.

Memory 420 may include a random access memory (RAM) or another type ofdynamic storage device to store data and instructions that may be usedby processor 410. Storage device 430 may include a persistent solidstate read/write device, a magnetic, and/or optical recording medium andits corresponding drive.

Network interface 440 may include a logical component that includesinput and/or output ports, input and/or output systems, and/or otherinput and output components that facilitate the transmission of data toother devices via a backhaul link. For example, network interface 440may include a network interface card (e.g., Ethernet card) for wiredcommunications and/or a wireless network interface (e.g., a WiFi) cardfor wireless communications.

Antenna controller 450 may accept data and/or commands (e.g. pointingand/or beamforming commands) from processor 410. Antenna controller 450may perform TX multiple input multiple output (MIMO) encoding to producemultiple channels of data, for a set of the antenna elements in antennaarray 470, which may be transmitted over a downlink channel. Signalswhich have been received over an uplink channel via antenna array 470may be decoded using RX MIMO decoding to combine streams into fewer datachannels or a single received channel. Antenna controller 450 mayfurther apply beamforming weights (which perform relative phase,frequency, and amplitude modulations between the antenna elements) onthe transmit data streams to electronically adjust the transmit antennapattern. Additionally, antenna controller 450 apply beamforming weightson the receive data streams to electronically adjust the receive antennapattern.

RF TX/RX elements 460 may include discreet RF elements to amplify,frequency demodulate (e.g., down convert) analog channels received viaan uplink channel through antenna array 470, and convert the analogchannels to received digital streams using analog to digital converters.The received digital streams may be passed to antenna controller 450which may further perform RX MIMO processing to combine MIMO streams. RFTX/RX elements 460 may further process transmit digital streams, whichmay be TX MIMO encoded by antenna controller 450 prior to beingconverted to analog signals using digital to analog converters. Theanalog signals may be frequency upconverted and amplified fortransmission at RF TX/RX elements 460, and subsequently radiated byantenna array 470, over a downlink channel.

Antenna array 470 may include a number of antenna elements in order toserve multiple sectors and/or to provide various antenna characteristics(e.g., antenna beamwidth, gain, side lobe control, etc.) appropriate forgNodeB 230 operations. The antenna elements may have independentchannels that may be used for electronic adjustments of both thetransmit and receive antenna patterns, and/or also for transmit and/orreceive MIMO processing to improve wireless channel reliability and/orthroughput. In an embodiment, antenna elements 470 may be “grouped”(though physical and/or electronic arrangement) and designated forcommunication with UEs 110 within a particular sector of gNodeB's 230overall coverage. The sector may be divided into angular segments(measured in a horizontal plane) pointing in different directions inorder to distribute coverage for gNodeB 230. For example, antennaelements 470 may be grouped in a triangular arrangement so each side ofthe triangle serves a 120-degree sector. The antenna pattern, generatedby the antenna elements associated with a particular sector, may becharacterized by angles (e.g., azimuth and elevation) defined by asector reference direction for the sector. The sector referencedirection may be specified by a vector extending from a reference pointassociated with the sector.

As described herein, gNodeB 230 may perform certain operations inresponse to processor 410 executing software instructions contained in acomputer-readable medium, such as memory 420 and or storage device 430.A computer-readable medium may be defined as a non-transitory memorydevice. A non-transitory memory device may include memory space within asingle physical memory device or spread across multiple physical memorydevices. The software instructions may be read into memory 420 fromanother computer-readable medium or from another device via networkinterface 440. The software instructions contained in memory 420 maycause processor 410 to perform processes which include enabling bothnormal coverage mode and enhanced coverage mode. Alternatively,hardwired circuitry may be used in place of, or in combination with,software instructions to implement processes described herein. Thus,implementations described herein are not limited to any specificcombination of hardware circuitry and software.

Although FIG. 4 shows example components of gNodeB 230, in otherimplementations, gNodeB 230 may include fewer components, differentcomponents, differently arranged components, or additional componentsthan those depicted in FIG. 4. Additionally, or alternatively, one ormore components of gNodeB 230 may perform the tasks described as beingperformed by one or more other components of eNodeB 230.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing exemplary components of UE 110according to an embodiment. UE 110 may include any type of electronic UEhaving communication capabilities, and thus communicate over networksusing a variety of different channels, including channels having wiredand/or wireless connections. As described previously, UE 110 mayinclude, for example, a cellular radiotelephone, a smart phone, atablet, a set-top box (STB), a mobile phone, a Voice over InternetProtocol (VoIP) device, a laptop computer, a palmtop computer, a gamingdevice, a media player device, or a digital camera that includescommunication capabilities (e.g., wireless communication mechanisms),and Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc. Further referring to FIG. 5,UE 110 may include bus 510, processor 520, memory 530, storage device540, ROM 550, modem 560, positioning system 570, antenna controller 580,radio frequency transmit/receive (RF TX/RX) elements 585, antenna array590, and input output (I/O) devices 595. In another embodiment, UE 110may only have one antenna and a signle associated RF TX/RX module, andmay not require antenna controller 580. Bus 510 may interconnect each ofthe components of UE 110 either directly or indirectly to exchangecommands and/or data.

Processor 520 may include a processor, microprocessor, or processinglogic that may interpret and execute instructions. Memory 530 mayinclude a random access memory (RAM) or another type of dynamic storagedevice that may store information and instructions for execution byprocessor 520. Storage device 540 may include a persistent solid stateread/write device, a magnetic, and/or optical recording medium and itscorresponding drive. ROM 550 may include a ROM device or another type ofstatic storage device that may store static information and instructionsfor use by processor 520.

Modem 560 may perform various communications and signal processingoperations allowing for UE 110 to efficiently communicate over thenetwork. Modem 560 may perform signal conditioning (e.g., filtering),signal encoding and decoding, signal modulation and demodulation, and/orerror correction for data being transferred over the access stratum.Modem 560 may also operate in the non-access stratum and thus facilitatesignaling and coordination with network devices in wireless accessnetwork to manage the establishment of communication sessions and formaintaining continuous communications.

Positioning system 570 may include a variety of receivers, sensors,and/or processors to provide relative and/or absolute position andorientation data of UE 110. For example, positioning system 570 mayinclude a satellite navigation system, such as, for example, globalpositioning system (GPS) component, which may provide positioninformation in relation to a standard reference frame. Positioninformation may include rectangular coordinates in the world geodeticsystem 1984 (WGS84) frame (in either two or three dimensions), geodiccoordinates such as latitude, longitude, and altitude, and/or othersuitable positioning data. In another embodiment, positioning system 570may include an internal measurement unit (IMU) to determine relativedisplacements based on measured accelerations, and/or gyroscopes tomeasure angular displacements such as the roll, pitch, and yaw of the UE110. Positioning system 570 may further include sensors, such asmagnetometers, which may be used to determine orientation in a referenceframe, such as, for example, the angular orientations with respect tomagnetic and/or true north.

Antenna controller 580 may accept data for transmission from processor520 and/or modem 560, and perform TX MIMO encoding if required toproduce multiple channels of data for a set of the antenna elements inantenna array 590, which may be transmitted over an uplink via wirelesschannel over RAT 215, 217. Signals which have been received in adownlink, via a wireless channel over RAT 215, 217, through antennaarray 590 may be decoded using RX MIMO decoding to combine streams intofewer data channels or a single received channel. Antenna controller 580may further apply beamforming weights (which perform relative phase,frequency, and amplitude modulations between the antenna elements) onthe transmit data streams to electronically adjust the transmit antennapattern. Additionally, antenna controller 580 may apply beamformingweights on the receive data streams to electronically adjust the receiveantenna pattern. Such adjustments may include main lobe pointing (theantenna pattern's main lobe may also be referred to herein as the“antenna beam,” the “beam,” or the “main beam”). Other adjustments mayinclude “forming nulls” which may include pointing side lobe nulls in aparticular direction and/or changing the side lobe pattern to alter theplacement and/or depth of antenna pattern nulls. Moreover, whentransmitting or receiving in enhanced coverage mode, antenna controller580 may perform additional processing to improve the reliability and orsignal-to-noise ratio of the wireless channel when UE 110 operates in anenvironment which presents challenging signal conditions that wouldsignificantly degrade wireless channel operating in normal coveragemode.

RF TX/RX elements 585 may include discreet RF elements to amplify,frequency demodulate (e.g., down convert) analog channels received overantenna array 590 and convert the analog channels to received digitalstreams using analog to digital converters. The received digital streamsmay be passed to antenna controller 580 which may further perform RXMIMO processing to combine MIMO streams. RF TX/RX elements 585 mayfurther process transmit digital streams, which may be TX MIMO encodedby antenna controller 580 prior to being converted to analog signalsusing digital to analog converters. The analog signals may be frequencyupconverted and amplified for transmission by RF TX/RX elements 585, andsubsequently radiated by antenna array 590.

Antenna array 590 may include at least two antenna elements which haveindependent channels that may be used for electronic adjustments of boththe transmit and receive antenna patterns, and/or also for transmitand/or receive MIMO processing to improve wireless channel reliabilityand/or throughput.

I/O devices 595 may include one or more mechanisms that permit anoperator to input information to UE 110, such as, for example, a keypador a keyboard, a microphone, voice recognition and/or biometricmechanisms, etc. I/O devices 595 may also include one or more mechanismsthat output information to the operator, including a display, a speaker,etc.

UE 110 may perform certain operations or processes, as may be describedin detail below. UE 110 may perform these operations in response toprocessor 520 executing software instructions contained in acomputer-readable medium, such as memory 530. A computer-readable mediummay be defined as a physical or logical memory device. A logical memorydevice may include memory space within a single physical memory deviceor spread across multiple physical memory devices. The softwareinstructions may be read into memory 530 from another computer-readablemedium, such as storage device 540, or from another device via thenetwork. The software instructions contained in memory 540 may causeprocessor 520 to perform operations or processes. Alternatively,hardwired circuitry may be used in place of or in combination withsoftware instructions to implement processes consistent with theprinciples of the embodiments. Thus, exemplary implementations are notlimited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software.

The configuration of components of UE 110 illustrated in FIG. 5 is forillustrative purposes only. It should be understood that otherconfigurations may be implemented. Therefore, UE 110 may includeadditional, fewer and/or different components than those depicted inFIG. 5.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are diagrams showing exemplary message flows withinnetworking system 200 for establishing a first set of radio bearers inthe case of a service request. The first set of radio bearers may beassociated with primary RAT 215 based on LTE standards. Referring toFIG. 6A, UE 110 may initially send a service request to eNodeB 220(M605). The service request may be made subsequent to UE 110transitioning from a power saving idle state to an active state. In thiscase, all of the radio bearers that were previously setup prior to UE110 going into an idle state are reestablished. EnodeB 220 may provide aservice request to MME 230 to reestablish bearers between the eNodeB 220and SGW 240 over the S1-U interface 225 (M610). UE 110, MME 230, and HSS260 may exchange multiple authentication and security messagesdetermining the permissions and service levels (QoS, bandwidths, etc.)authorized or set by the service provider for the user associated withUE 110 (M615). Once UE 110 is authenticated for service, MME 230 maysend an initial context setup request to eNodeB 220 (M620). The contextmay include signaling bearers (e.g. Radio Resource Control bearer and aNon-Access Stratum bearer) and a data radio bearer. ENodeB 220 and UE110 may exchange messages to establish the first set of radio bearersassociated with RAT 215 based on LTE (M625). Information messages M625may include an indication that additional bearers may be set up on RAT217. This indication may be sent so that the UE 110 will not drop anybearers that were previously setup, but were not included in the firstset of radio bearers.

Once the radio bearers have been established, UE 110 may send uplinkdata to PGW 270 via eNodeB 220 and SGW 240 (M630). ENodeB 220 may send amessage to MME 230 indicating that the context setup for the first setof bearers is complete (M635). This message may include a flagindicating the setup is only partially complete, as the second set ofbearers associated with RAT 217 on 5G have not been setup.

Referring to FIG. 6B, MME 230 may send a modify bearer request to SGW240 for each radio bearer that has been established. (M640). As shown inFIG. 6B, a shaded box is shown to indicate messages M645-M655 areexchanged for each bearer associated with the first set of bearers toperform the modification operation. The modification includes updatingthe address of eNodeB 220 in each bearer so SGW 240 may send data toeNodeB 220 on the download channel associated with RAT 215. A modifybearer request is sent to PGW 270 (M645) for each bearer. Messages arethen exchanged between PGW 270 and PCRF 290 to modify the internetprotocol connectivity access network (IP-CAN) session (M650) for eachbearer. PGW 270 may send a modify bearer response to SGW 240 indicatingthat each bearer has been modified (M655). Once all of the bearers havebeen modified, SGW 240 will send a modify bear response to MME 230(M660).

FIGS. 7A and 7B are diagrams showing exemplary message flows withinnetworking system 200 for establishing a second set of radio bearers forthe case of a service request. Once the first set of radio bearersassociated with RAT 215 have been setup, the second set of radio bearersassociated with secondary RAT 217 may be setup based on 5G standards.Referring to FIG. 7A, eNodeB 220, which is serving as a master NodeB(MN), may send a secondary node (SN) addition request to gNode B 230(M705), and gNodeB 230 may respond with an acknowledgment that it isavailable to serve as a SN (M710). EnodeB 220 may send a radio resourcecontrol (RRC) connection reconfiguration message to UE 110 so it mayestablish a second set of radio bearers with gNodeB 230 (M715). Uponreconfiguration of the RRC connection for the UE 110, UE 110 may send anRRC connection reconfiguration complete message (M720), and eNodeB 220may provide an SN reconfiguration complete message to gNodeB 230 (M725)initiating a second set of radio bearers to be established. UE 110 andgNodeB 230 may exchange data over a random access procedure (M730).

Referring to FIG. 7B, eNodeB 220 may send a status transfer message togNodeB 230 (M735), and then send an intial context setup completemessage to MME 230 (M740), to indicate to ePC 240 that 5G bearers are tobe modified in ePC 240. As shown in FIG. 7B, a shaded box is shown toindicate messages M745-M760 are exchanged for each bearer associatedwith the second set of bearers to perform the modification operation.The modification includes updating the address of gNodeB 230 in eachbearer so SGW 240 may send data to gNodeB 230 on the download channelassociated with RAT 217. A modify bearer request is sent to from MME 230to SGW 240 (M745) for each bearer. The modification bearer request isforwarded from SGW 240 to PGW 270 (M750). PGW 270 may send a modifybearer response to SGW 240 indicating that each bearer has been modified(M755), and then SGW 240 may send a modify bearer response to MME 230(M760). In this manner, the second set of radio bearers associated withRAT 217 may be directly established in the secondary access networkwithout having to waste resources by initially setting the second set ofradio bearers up by eNodeB 220 for RAT 215, and subsequentlytransferring the second set of radio bearers to gNodeB 230 for use withRAT 217.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing an exemplary process 800 for beareractivation which may be performed by master node 120. In an embodiment,process 800 may be performed by processor 310 within eNodeB 220executing instructions stored in memory 320, and/or mass storage device330.

Referring to FIG. 8, master node 120 may receive information regardingchannel conditions associated with the secondary RAT 117 at master node120 (Block 805). MN 120 may be associated with primary RAT 115. In anembodiment, master node 120 may receive measurement reports from UE 110regarding channel conditions of secondary RAT 117 between the UE 110 andthe secondary node 130. Master node 120 may identify a first set ofradio bearers suitable for primary RAT 115 and a second set of radiobearers suitable for secondary RAT 117 based on the received channelconditions (Block 810). In an embodiment, master node 120 may receive alist of bearers to be activated for exchanging service data flowsassociated with a plurality applications. In an embodiment, master node120 may compare the received list of bearers with information residingwithin master node 120 that identifies the suitability of bearersassociated with different RATs 115, 117 for the service data flowsassociated with the plurality applications. Master node 120 mayestablish only the first set of radio bearers associated with primaryRAT 117 (Block 815).

Master node 120 may provide a message to core network 140 indicatingthat the first set of radio bearers have been established for primaryRAT 115 (Block 820). The message may include an indication that thesecond set of radio bearers will subsequently be established after corenetwork 140 has been configured for operation with the first set ofradio bearers. In an embodiment, master node 120 may provide UE 110,upon establishing the first set of radio bearers and prior toestablishing the second set of radio bearers, an indication thatadditional bearers associated with secondary RAT 117 will subsequentlybe established at a later time. In an embodiment, master node 120 maysend a message to core network 140 that a completion of a context setupfor the first set of radio bearers is partially complete to indicatethat a context for the second set of radio bearers has not been setup,as described above with respect to FIG. 6A (e.g., M635).

Master node 120 may then reconfigure UE 110 for establishing the secondset of radio bearers associated with secondary RAT 117 (Block 825), asdescribed above with respect to FIGS. 7A and 7B. Master node 120 mayindicate to secondary node 130 that the reconfiguration of UE 110 forthe second set of radio bearers is complete (Block 830).

In an embodiment, master node 120 is an eNodeB 220 wirelesslycommunicating with primary RAT 215 associated with an LTE network.Secondary node 130 is gNodeB 230 wirelessly communicating with secondaryRAT 217 associated with a 5G network.

The foregoing description of implementations provides illustration anddescription, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise form disclosed. Various preferred embodimentshave been described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It willbe evident that modifications and changes may be made thereto, andadditional embodiments may be implemented, without departing from thebroader scope of the invention as set forth in the claims that follow.For example, while series of messages, states, and/or blocks have beendescribed with regard to FIGS. 6A-8, the order of the messages, states,and/or blocks may be modified in other embodiments. Further,non-dependent messaging and/or processing blocks may be performed inparallel. The specification and drawings are accordingly to be regardedin an illustrative rather than restrictive sense.

Certain features described above may be implemented as “logic” or a“unit” that performs one or more functions. This logic or unit mayinclude hardware, such as one or more processors, microprocessors,application specific integrated circuits, or field programmable gatearrays, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

The terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” as used herein specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps or components but does notpreclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,integers, steps, components, or groups thereof. Further, the term“exemplary” (e.g., “exemplary embodiment,” “exemplary configuration,”etc.) means “as an example” and does not mean “preferred,” “best,” orlikewise.

To the extent the aforementioned embodiments collect, store or employpersonal information provided by individuals, it should be understoodthat such information shall be used in accordance with all applicablelaws concerning protection of personal information. Additionally, thecollection, storage and use of such information may be subject toconsent of the individual to such activity, for example, through wellknown “opt-in” or “opt-out” processes as may be appropriate for thesituation and type of information. Storage and use of personalinformation may be in an appropriately secure manner reflective of thetype of information, for example, through various encryption andanonymization techniques for particularly sensitive information.

No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the presentapplication should be construed as critical or essential to theinvention unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, thearticle “a” is intended to include one or more items. Further, thephrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on”unless explicitly stated otherwise.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising: receiving, at a master nodeassociated with a primary radio access technology (RAT), informationregarding channel conditions associated with a secondary RAT;identifying, by the master node, a first set of radio bearers suitablefor the primary RAT and a second set of radio bearers suitable for thesecondary RAT based on the received channel conditions; establishing, bythe master node, only the first set of radio bearers associated with theprimary RAT; providing, from the master node, a message to a corenetwork indicating that the first set of radio bearers have beenestablished for the primary RAT, wherein the message includes anindication that the second set of radio bearers will subsequently beestablished after the core network has been configured for operationwith the first set of radio bearers; reconfiguring, by the master node,a user equipment (UE) for establishing the second set of radio bearersassociated with the secondary RAT; and indicating, by the master node toa secondary node, that the reconfiguration of the UE for the second setof radio bearers is complete.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein thereceiving further comprises: receiving measurement reports from the UEregarding channel conditions of the secondary RAT between the UE and thesecondary node.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifyingcomprises: receiving a list of bearers to be activated for exchangingservice data flows associated with a plurality applications.
 4. Themethod of claim 3, wherein the identifying further comprises: comparingthe received list of bearers with information residing within the masternode identifying the suitability of bearers associated with thedifferent RATs for the service data flows associated with the pluralityof applications.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:providing, from the master node to the UE upon establishing the firstset of radio bearers and prior to establishing the second set of radiobearers, an indication that additional bearers associated with thesecondary RAT will be established.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein theproviding further comprises: sending a message to the core network thata completion of a context setup for the first set of radio bearers ispartially complete to indicate that a context for the second set ofradio bearers has not been setup.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein themaster node is an eNodeB wirelessly communicating via the primary RATassociated with an LTE network, and the secondary node is a gNodeBwirelessly communicating via the secondary RAT associated with a 5Gnetwork.
 8. A node, comprising: a network interface; an RF interface andantenna associated with a primary radio access technology (RAT); amemory configured to store instructions; and a processor coupled to thecommunication interface and the memory, wherein the processor isconfigured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to: receiveinformation regarding channel conditions associated with a secondaryRAT; identify a first set of radio bearers suitable for the primary RATand a second set of radio bearers suitable for the secondary RAT basedon the received channel conditions; establish only the first set ofradio bearers associated with the primary RAT; provide a message to acore network indicating that the first set of radio bearers have beenestablished for the primary RAT, wherein the message includes anindication that the second set of radio bearers will subsequently beestablished after the core network has been configured for operationwith the first set of radio bearers; reconfigure a user equipment (UE)for establishing the second set of radio bearers associated with thesecondary RAT; and indicate to a secondary node, that thereconfiguration of the UE for the second set of radio bearers iscomplete.
 9. The node of claim 8, wherein the instructions for receivingcause the processor to: receive measurement reports from the UEregarding channel conditions of the secondary RAT between the UE and thesecondary node.
 10. The node of claim 8, wherein the instructions foridentifying cause the processor to: receive a list of bearers to beactivated for exchanging service data flows associated with a pluralityof applications.
 11. The node of claim 10, wherein the instructions foridentifying cause the processor to: compare the received list of bearerswith information residing within the master node identifying thesuitability of bearers associated with the different RATs for theservice data flows associated with the plurality of applications. 12.The node of claim 8, wherein the instructions cause the processor to:provide to the UE upon establishing the first set of radio bearers andprior to establishing the second set of radio bearers, an indicationthat additional bearers associated with the secondary RAT will beestablished.
 13. The node of claim 8, wherein the instructions forproviding cause the processor to: send a message to the core networkthat a completion of a context setup for the first set of radio bearersis partially complete to indicate that a context for the second set ofradio bearers has not been setup.
 14. The node of claim 8, wherein thenode is an master node eNodeB wirelessly communicating via the primaryRAT associated with an LTE network, and the secondary node is a gNodeBwirelessly communicating via the secondary RAT associated with a 5Gnetwork.
 15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprisinginstructions, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processorto: receive, at a master node associated with a primary radio accesstechnology (RAT), information regarding channel conditions associatedwith a secondary RAT; identify, by the master node, a first set of radiobearers suitable for the primary RAT and a second set of radio bearerssuitable for the secondary RAT based on the received channel conditions;establish, by the master node, only the first set of radio bearersassociated with the primary RAT; provide, from the master node, amessage to a core network indicating that the first set of radio bearershave been established for the primary RAT, wherein the message includesan indication that the second set of radio bearers will subsequently beestablished after the core network has been configured for operationwith the first set of radio bearers; reconfigure, by the master node, auser equipment (UE) for establishing the second set of radio bearersassociated with the secondary RAT; and indicate, by the master node to asecondary node, that the reconfiguration of the UE for the second set ofradio bearers is complete.
 16. The non-transitory computer-readablemedium of claim 15, wherein the instructions for receiving cause theprocessor to: receive measurement reports from the UE regarding channelconditions of the secondary RAT between the UE and the secondary node.17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein theinstructions for identifying cause the processor to: receive a list ofbearers to be activated for exchanging service data flows associatedwith a plurality of applications.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions foridentifying cause the processor to: compare the received list of bearerswith information residing within the master node identifying thesuitability of bearers associated with the different RATs for theservice data flows associated with the plurality of applications. 19.The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein theinstructions further cause the processor to: provide, from the masternode to the UE upon establishing the first set of radio bearers andprior to establishing the second set of radio bearers, an indicationthat additional bearers associated with the secondary RAT will beestablished.
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim15, wherein the instructions for providing cause the processor to: senda message to the core network that a completion of a context setup forthe first set of radio bearers is partially complete to indicate that acontext for the second set of radio bearers has not been setup.